Cons

Bottom Line

The Leica T (Typ 701) features a stunning aluminum unibody design, but it's not as robust as its price tag implies.

June 21, 2016Jim Fisher

For a company that hasn't made any significant changes to the design of its flagship camera in the 60 years since the introduction of the M3, the Leica T (Typ 701) ($1,629, body only) is a bold statement. Its sleek aluminum unibody design is a huge departure from the classic aesthetics of the Leica M (Typ 240), and its forward-thinking, touch-screen interface is reminiscent of the Android-powered Samsung Galaxy NX. The T is a great-looking camera, its captures excellent images with its 16-megapixel APS-C image sensor, with lots of detail through higher ISO settings thanks to a hands-off approach to in-camera noise reduction. But, because of some operating quirks, a high price tag, and the simple fact that competing models deliver more for your money, it's a tough sell for many photographers. Our Editors' Choice for high-end mirrorless cameras is the Sony Alpha 6300, which is a fast-focusing, fast-shooting camera that sells for less.

Editors' Note: Leica has addressed some of our initial complaints about the T via firmware updates since our initial July 2014 review. We've reevaluated the camera with the current firmware, and have increased our rating from 2.5 stars to 3 stars.

Design and Features There's no arguing the fact that the T is gorgeous. I've shot with both the silver and black versions, and they're each stunning in their own way. I'll give slight preference to the silver, as its brushed aluminum look makes it stand out from the crowd. The body, cut from a single block of aluminum, measures 2.7 by 5.3 by 1.3 inches (HWD) and weighs 13.6 ounces without a lens. It's fairly small compared with other premium mirrorless cameras, though not that far off in size from the Fujifilm X-Pro1 (3.2 by 5.5 b 1.7 inches, 15.9 ounces), which is a little bit bigger, but includes an integrated viewfinder.

The body doesn't include standard strap lugs. Instead, there's a hole on either side, accessible only by using a special tool (or, in my case, a bent paper clip) to eject the protective covers. The included silicone strap plugs right in, but I found it a bit too short for my liking. I wasn't able to use the standard long leather strap from Tap & Dye that I prefer with mirrorless cameras, so I opted for a wrist strap that screws into the tripod socket to secure the T in my hands. The polished aluminum looks great, but I wouldn't feel comfortable holding onto the body without a strap of some sort. It just doesn't feel as steady as a camera with a more traditional finish.

All of the T's physical controls are located on its top plate, to the right of the accessory hot shoe and pop-up flash. There are two control dials, a power switch and shutter release, and the video record button. That's it. If you want to shoot with the T, you're going to have to get used to using a touch screen.

At 3.7 inches, the rear display is big. It packs 1,300k-dots into that space, giving it an extremely sharp appearance. I had no issues using it outdoors on bright days, but I did miss the tilting rear display that Fujifilm includes in its top-end X-T1. The X-T1 includes an integrated electronic viewfinder. If you want to add that functionality to the T, you'll have to invest in the Visoflex (Typ 020) EVF. At nearly $600, the Visoflex is a pricey add-on, but it does include an integrated GPS module.

The rear display's touch sensitivity is excellent, on par with a good smartphone, and the user interface is responsive. It's a 16:9 aspect ratio, so the 3:2 Live View feed only takes up part of the screen. A column of touch controls runs along the right side; it adjusts the shooting mode, accesses the menu, and toggles the amount of information displayed over the Live View feed. If you're worried you'll accidentally activate one of these controls while shooting, fear not; the entire column can be disabled or enabled with a tap. There's no button to review images; instead you just swipe up from the bottom of the screen to switch to Playback mode.

The standard shooting modes—Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual—are available via the Mode setting. Leica also includes a number of preset Scene modes (Auto, Sports, Portrait, Landscape, Night Portrait, Snow/Beach, Fireworks, Candle Light, and Sunset), which surprised me. Scene modes on a Leica seem out of place.

Tapping the camera icon below the Mode icon takes you to the main shooting menu. From here you can control any number of settings. By default there are eight options on the screen, arranged in a 3-by-3 grid. The ninth position is a plus sign, which allows you to add an available setting to the grid. You can also press and hold any icon to drag it to the trash. With a little effort, you can customize the menu so that it gives you quick access to the settings you use frequently. There's a wrench and screwdriver icon at the top of right column that offers access to all available menu settings.

The function of the right control dial varies by mode—it adjusts the aperture when shooting Aperture Priority, the shutter speed in Shutter Priority, and the shutter speed in Manual mode. If you're not shooting in Manual, which dedicates it to aperture control, the left dial is customizable. You can set it to adjust exposure compensation, shift the ISO, adjust the white balance, change the focus mode, enable the self-timer, or change the flash mode.

There's no HDMI port, so you can't connect the T directly to an HDTV. There is a standard micro USB port, which allows you to connect to a PC to transfer data, or to connect to a wall outlet via a USB cable to charge the battery internally. Leica also provides a wall charger, so if you're the type of shooter who keeps a spare battery on hand, you can charge one while still using the T, or charge two batteries simultaneously at the end of a long shooting day. Removing the battery can be a bit tricky—in addition to flipping a switch to release it, you need to push it in slightly to unlock it—but once you've mastered the technique, it's pretty easy to swap out batteries in the field. There's a standard memory card slot that accepts SD, SDHC, and SDXC cards, and the T includes 16GB of internal storage if you prefer not to use a card.

Focus Modes There's one other exception to the general rule when it comes to control dial functionality. If you're using an M rangefinder lens via the M-Adapter-T ($395), the left wheel can be set to enable magnification as a manual focus aid. When using an adapted lens, there are some other restrictions—only Aperture Priority or Manual shooting is available, for one. If you shoot in Av the aperture is controlled via the lens and the right dial is locked in to control the ISO. If you opt to shoot in Manual, the right dial is locked in to control the shutter speed.

The control system may sound a bit complicated, but in reality it's fairly intuitive. I like the ability to customize the dials, and to quickly change the functions via the touch interface. When used in conjunction with the EVF, the focus magnification worked well with the vintage Summicron Dual Range 50mm that I was using with the T. That's one lens that doesn't work with the M (Typ 240) due to its extended rangefinder coupling for close focus. But even though I was able to use this lens, which I normally can only mount to my M3, I struggled a bit with the T's capabilities when using adapted manual focus lenses.

A magnified frame view does help to ensure proper focus, but it's not the only tool out there. Leica includes focus peaking on the M (Typ 240), but it's not included with the T. By itself peaking can be hit or miss when shooting at wide apertures, but when combined with magnification I've found it to be a really effective tool. Like the M, magnification is limited to the center of the frame, which is a shame. Other mirrorless cameras, including the full-frame Sony Alpha 7 II, support peaking and magnification, and allow you to move the magnified area around the frame. If you're looking at the T as a platform for your M rangefinder lenses, I'd say look elsewhere. A body with a traditional optical finder and coupled rangefinder focusing, like the M (Typ 240), M-E, or M Monochrom is still your best platform for those lenses, but if you can't stretch your budget that far, the Sony Alpha 7 II is a better way to go all around. It's priced similarly, has better tools for precise manual focus, includes in-body stabilization, and its full-frame sensor won't crop the field of view of your older lenses.

When the T launched it didn't support continuous autofocus and its touch capabilities for focus didn't make any sense. You could tap on the screen to set a focus point, but you wouldn't be able to reacquire focus using the shutter button—you'd have to tap again to get the camera to refocus. With new firmware the T's touch focus works like it does with almost every other camera. Tapping an area of the screen sets the active focus point and locks focus. You can choose to refocus the camera by pressing the shutter button in halfway, or by tapping the screen once more. You can also set the camera to focus and fire a shot by touch.

The improved touch interface sidesteps some of the foibles of selecting focus points in other focus modes. There is a 1-Point mode, for example, that sets the point via the camera menu. Once it's set, you can't tap the screen to change it without going into the menu. This is a solid choice if you're setting up a shot on a tripod and want to make sure you don't inadvertantly change your focus point, but isn't ideal for handheld photography. If you're against using the touch interface to set focus, I recommend using the center focus point setting and recomposing images to suit your fancy after you've locked on to a target, or simply let the camera take over control of the focus point selection via its multi-point setting or via its Face Detection mode.

Wi-Fi

The T's Wi-Fi functionality is a lot better with firmware version 1.5 than it was upon initial release. Originally it wasn't possible to transfer photos from the T to a smartphone unless both were connected to the same Wi-Fi network. That meant that you couldn't transfer photos to your phone or tablet when a Wi-Fi network wasn't available. Want to Instagram a photo from Yellowstone? You'd be out of luck. Now you can set the T to broadcast a network for direct connection to your smartphone or tablet, or you can have it connect to your home Wi-Fi network. You're prompted as to which operating mode you want when you turn Wi-Fi on via the camera menu.

The T companion app is available for iOS only. Android (and Windows Phone) users aren't completely shut out, as the T has a Web server that allows you to view images in any Wi-Fi device with a browser, including a laptop or desktop computer. But only iOS devices can act as a wireless remote control.

The remote control experience is solid. The Live View feed streams smoothly to the T. You can tap an area of the screen to set the focus point, fire the shutter via an on-screen control, and also adjust all exposure settings. The connection is stable when a peer-to-peer connection is made between camera and smartphone. But it's spotty when both the T and your phone are connected to a Wi-Fi network. I experienced several hiccups and timeouts when working with the remote with Wi-Fi set up in that manner, even when I was sitting only a few feet from my 802.11ac Apple Time Capsule router.

Performance and Image QualityLeica cameras aren't known for blistering fast speed, and the T does nothing to change that. Its startup time is in line with other mirrorless cameras, about 1.8 seconds, but its autofocus speed leaves a bit to be desired. A focus lock requires about 0.2-second in bright light and about 1.2 seconds in very dim conditions. Other mirrorless cameras in this price range, including the Sony Alpha 6300, can lock focus with no lag at all.

The T is not a camera that you buy if you're interested in capturing fast-moving action. It shoots at up to 4.2fps, and can only keep that modest rate up for 10 Raw+JPG or 12 JPG shots. There is a Continuous AF setting, which looks for focus as long as you hold the shutter down, but it doesn't reconfirm focus between images when shooting in bursts, so you'll end up with out-of-focus shots if your subject changes distance from the camera during the burst. The Fujifilm X-T1 or the Sony 6300 is a better choice for shooting action; the Fuji can track subjects at 8.3fps, and the Sony at 11.1fps.

We are reviewing the T as a body only. Its lens library has grown since launch, with six available or announced, ranging from the ultra-wide 11-23mm to the telephoto 55-135mm ($1,895), with the standard 18-56mm zoom in between. There are three prime lenses—the 23mm f/2, the 35mm f/1.4, and the upcoming 60mm f/2.8 Macro. Additionally, you can use lenses for the full-frame Leica SL without an adapter.

I used Imatest to see how much noise the T's 16-megpaixel APS-C image sensor shows throughout its ISO range. It keeps noise under 1.5 percent through ISO 1600, which isn't the best we've seen in a mirrorless camera. It jumps to 2.5 percent at ISO 3200 and 3.6 percent at ISO 6400. The Olympus OM-D E-M1, which also uses a 16-megapixel Micro Four Thirds sensor that's a bit smaller in size, also keeps noise under 1.5 percent through ISO 1600, but it increases to just 1.7 percent at ISO 3200. The T should have an advantage given the identical pixel count and its larger image sensor. Close examination of images on a calibrated NEC MultiSync PA271W display shows Leica has opted to take a very hands-off approach to in-camera noise reduction. That's a good thing, as you can always use software to remove noise, and to do so more effectively than in-camera processing can manage. Detail is quite good even at ISO 3200, and even though ISO 6400 JPGs are very grainy, there's no evidence of smudged lines in our test image. When you push the camera to its top ISO 12500 there is some loss of quality, and lots of grain, but it's still useable in a pinch.

You can opt to shoot in Raw format to get some more flexibility with editing files, but because the T takes such a backseat when it comes to reducing noise in-camera, you won't see a huge advantage in detail until you push the camera to ISO 12500. We've included crops in both Raw and JPG format from our ISO test scene in the accompanying slideshow, so you can see just how image quality holds up at each full-stop sensitivity. Adobe Lightroom is included as a Raw converter.

The T records video at up to 1080p30 quality in QuickTime format. Details are crisp and colors are accurate, but there are no manual controls available when recording. The camera autofocuses silently, and the internal mic picks up voices with no issue. But there's no way to connect an external mic, and the video shows evidence of the rolling shutter effect during quick pans. The T is fine for the occasional clip, but its functionality is too limited for serious video work.

Conclusions

The Leica T (Typ 701) is absolutely beautiful, and I applaud the company for its forward-thinking design. Once I got used to the customizable menus, dual control dials, and touch-screen interface, I found that taking control of the camera was, for most part, natural. But the T is hampered by an autofocus system that can't keep up with the competition. It's slow to lock onto a target when shooting stills and isn't capable of tracking moving targets when shooting in continuous drive mode.

Leica has done a good job building the T's lens system since the camea's 2014 launch. A trio of zooms and a trio of prime lenses cover ultra-wide angles and telephoto focal ranges, with a pair of wide aperture primes and a forthcoming macro lens rounding things out. Additionally, the T can mount full-frame SL lenses without an adapter and with full autofocus functionality. And there's the ability to use M lenses via an adapter.

But if you're a longtime Leica shooter and already have a collection of M lenses, there are better digital options out there. Leica's own M (Typ 240) retains the optical rangefinder focusing that you're used to, but comes at a premium ($6,950) retail price. If you can't stomach that, the T may look like an appealing option on the surface, but the Sony Alpha 7 II is a better camera for M-mount lenses, as is Leica's own SL. Both are full-frame, provide a superior manual focus experience, and include a built-in EVF.

And on the off-chance that you don't give a hoot about legacy lenses, and are just looking to dip your toes into the mirrorless world, the T remains a tough sell. Competing cameras can't match its looks (although the Fujifilm X-Pro2 comes close, in its own way), but bodies that are comparable in price generally offer much better autofocus performance. Not everyone wants to try and capture images of birds in flight, but the ability to set the Fujifilm X-T1 and our Editors' Choice Sony Alpha 6300 to rattle off shots with tracking autofocus at high frame rates can't be discounted.

All of this makes the T a tough sell, even to Leica devotees. If you're absolutely in love with its design, and are willing to live with its limitations and foibles, you won't be disappointed with its image quality. But you can get a lot more for your money with another camera system.

About the Author

Senior digital camera analyst for the PCMag consumer electronics reviews team, Jim Fisher is a graduate of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he concentrated on documentary video production. Jim's interest in photography really took off when he borrowed his father's Hasselblad 500C and light meter in 2007.

He honed his writing skills at retailer B&H Photo, where he wrote thousands upon thousands of product descriptions, blog posts, and reviews. Since then he's shot with hundreds of camera models, ranging from pocket point-and-shoots to medium format digital cameras. And he's reviewed almost all of them. When he's not testing cameras and gear for PCMag, he's likely out and about shooting with ... See Full Bio